Early on September 17th local time, oil products tanker Thailaemthong 8 (IMO 9058581) ran aground at Koh Mai Si, off the coast of Koh Kood off the Soneva Kiri Resort in the Trat province of Vietnam. There were 12 crew members on board, but none was injured. Strong waves, possibly part of Typhoon Bebinca, which was the strongest storm to hit Shanghai in 75 years when it struck last Monday September 16th, caused an engine failure and disabled the ship, which then drifted ashore.
The Koh Kood District Chief and the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre (Sor Chor Ror) of Trat were working together to assess the damage and provide assistance, after the Trat Marine Security Centre (Sor Chor Ror Trat) received a distress call from the captain.
The captain reported that the vessel had suffered a breach of its hull. That caused water to flood the engine room. The stormy winds and waves raised concerns about the potential sinking of the tanker and the environmental impact of an oil spill in the Koh Kood area.
Heavy seas around Koh Kood initially prevented any rescue boats from reaching the grounded vessel. Two fishing boats and a Navy ship tried to tow the tanker back into open waters. However, operations were difficult due to the poor weather and swollen waves.
All crew members were then evacuated from the ship. They had earlier pumped out water to keep the tanker from sinking. The ship had made an overnight stop between Koh Mai Si and Koh Kut islands to shelter from a storm during the evening of September 16th. However, its engine failed the following morning at about 06:00.
There were no reports of pollution. The vessel had been transporting fuel from the Rayong province and had delivered it to fishing boats operating in Trat’s border waters. It was en route back to Rayong.
1992-built, Thailand-flagged, 1,893 gt Thailaemthong 8 is owned and managed by Thailaemthong Supply of Samut Prakan, Thailand. It is entered with Shipowners’ Club on behalf of Thailaemthong Supply And Service Co Ltd. As of September 17th it was in the Gulf of Thailand.